The Cincinnati Public Schools board of education voted unanimously in favor of a mask-optional policy during a Monday evening board meeting.
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The amended policy goes into effect Tuesday, officials said.
The resolution was supported by district administrators and allows for all students, employees and visitors to wear a mask inside district buildings if they choose. This is a significant change to the universal indoor mask policy the district operated under for the last year and a half.
“I’m going to leave it to the science,” newly elected board member Mary Wineberg said during Monday’s meeting. “I do believe it is time.”
The updated policy is in line with the latest guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. These guidelines no longer delineate between regular public spaces and K-12 school buildings and follow a three-level risk analysis to determine the need for masks and other COVID-19 prevention measures by county.
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The CDC’s low, medium and high levels are determined by the number of hospital beds in use, hospital admissions and total COVID-19 case numbers in an area. Low and medium community levels do not call for universal indoor masking, but the high level does.
Hamilton County was at the medium level last week and now rests at the low community level according to the CDC’s tracker. While not required, anyone is allowed to wear a mask at any time if they wish under this new guidance. Those with symptoms, a positive test or an exposure to someone with the virus should wear a mask, the CDC states.
The district’s updated policy, presented by newly elected board member Kareem Moffett, specifies masking guidance for those who test positive for the virus, which includes a five-day isolation period followed by required masking for 10 days in CPS buildings.
The old mask policy was adopted in August 2020 and last revised in August 2021. While the CDC informs the district’s COVID-19 safety measures, the district’s mask policy operates separately.
Prior to Monday’s meeting, CPS’ universal mask policy applied to everyone – students, staff, teachers, administrators, volunteers and visitors – and required masks inside district buildings, on district-provided transportation and during field trips or other off-campus school activities. Exemptions were available for health reasons and the rule did not apply when staff were working alone in an assigned work area or when students or staff were eating, drinking or exercising.
The amended resolution (which can be found here or at the end of this story) does not require all students, staff and visitors to wear masks inside schools when the risk of infection is “determined by the Board to be safely low.” Those exposed to the virus are “strongly encouraged” to wear a mask and get tested for COVID-19.
“The District administration will support individuals who wear a mask and ensure that they are protected from any form of harassment, intimidation, or bullying,” the resolution reads.
The resolution also states the board can switch to universal or partial masking at any time if the administration recommends action due to increased community spread.
Discussion to amend CPS’ universal mask policy began last week when assistant superintendent Susan Bunte presented on the CDC’s updated guidance.
“We have, as a district, been closely aligned to what CDC has provided in terms of guidance all along,” Bunte said during the Feb. 28 meeting. “So our recommendation would be to follow the CDC guidance.”
On Monday most board members agreed that it was time to phase out the universal mask mandate, including board member Mike Moroski, who historically advocated for strict COVID-19 safety precautions including the staff vaccine mandate that went into effect in the fall.
Vice president Carolyn Jones was the only board member to say she was not “100% happy” about the change, citing concerns over students who cannot be vaccinated yet and are at risk for illness. She ultimately voted for the amended policy.
“Let’s just be real, there’s going to be folks who step in here with symptoms,” Jones said, “and not realize that they have COVID. And so I’m encouraging our public to be very conscientious about that and be sensitive enough that if you’re sick, to stay home.”
According to the latest Ohio Department of Education data, last updated on Thursday, 85% of Ohio’s public school districts (which includes 75% of Ohio’s students) have mask-optional policies.
